Quicksand
by Ghostsballad
Summary: Modern. Who was to know that a thoughtless last-minute bet would be the ultimate undoing of two broken people? Or was it rather the situation they had been unfortunately placed in by happenstance? In hindsight, they were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.
1. One Day

Hello, everyone! While I have written a few small stories, this is my very first novel-like story so please be open-minded. While the story is has a romance genre, the plot is still strong and I hope it meets your wishes. Thank you to everyone who supports me on this journey. Please read and review!

 _Disclaimer:_ I do not own The Phantom of the Opera or any of the characters in it. You can thank Gaston Leroux for that.

 **Warmth.**

When she was broken, she was whole. When she was whole, she was broken.

It was a little seesaw that Christine seemed to teeter from time to time. Whenever she was sad, her father would be there to comfort her and make her feel all better. Usually when things started going great, everything went wrong again but her father would be there for her again and again as he swore he would be.

But she wasn't whole anymore.

Her father wasn't there to comfort her; he wouldn't be there to make her whole again. And of course, this all had to fall apart when her life was getting better. It had been almost together. Normal.

There had been that stupid, _stupid_ almost.

Maybe it was the deniability that supposedly comes after you lose someone or maybe it was the fact that she had never felt so completely and utterly lost before, but she felt she had finally lost the will to not just live, but to be alive. After losing her mother, being fired from _so_ many tedious jobs, dealing with her depression and anxiety that decided to haunt her frequently whenever it pleased, numerous trips to the hospital for her mother, and now… his death.

His _death_.

Death.

Dead…

He was dead.

Her hands tightened their grip on the steering wheel. It was the finale. After every great crescendo, it had been leading up to this moment. God seemed to like to tease her. Make her think the worse had already come.

But she could think of nothing worse than the fact that everyone she had ever known and loved was now dead. Every single person she had ever met, smiled at, spoke with, or loved would never be in her sight again.

And she couldn't help but feel that seesaw of whole-brokenness falling apart as the broken began to take over.

* * *

 _Three years later._

"Christine."

She hurried to the kitchen and pulled the kettle of the stove quickly before the screams of the kettle made their ears fall off. She knew there was a different kind of kettle that would whistle in a lower tone, but the woman who owned the house seemed rather reluctant to buy any new gadgets of this "disappointing new teenage consumed era".

"Christine."

So they kept it. Not if they had enough money anyway. They were lucky to have a working microwave. With Ms. Valerius's halftime job as a nurse at the Saint Agnes Hospital and Christine's constant failing attempts to get apparently any job, they were only able to do so much. If only Christine hadn't dropped out of college. If only she hadn't gotten depressed which led to her dropping-out. If only her father hadn't passed away, then _none_ of this would be happening. None of it at all. And they would have the new kettle.

"Christine!"

Christine spun around, her brown hair tangling in her vision. "What? What?"

Ms. Valerius sighed. "I thought I was the one with bad hearing." Christine scoffed. "Never mind. I was asking if you would mind to give me the lavender tea this time."

She ignored the condescending tone. "Oh. Yeah…any honey?"

"Yes, please." Christine reached over and poured honey into both of their cups. She, on the other hand, preferred the sleepy time tea. Even if it was 6:00 AM. It helped relax her muscles.

"You know, Christine, sleepy time tea doesn't get you ready for the day. It would do you good to drink some coffee."

She frowned. "It's not as good for you as tea is. It has a lot of caffeine and sugar. I thought you'd be more aware being a nurse and all."

"All in moderation. A little coffee a day wouldn't hurt. And black coffee doesn't have any calories. Could you hang me the newspaper, dear?"

"Diet coke doesn't have any calories either but it still destroys the liver." She spoke as she handed her the paper. It was at least a week old, but the newspaper has been postponed due to their inability to pay. But she still played along. "Any good news?"

The woman glanced around the page for a few seconds then muttered. "Nope… just a bunch of politics and sports."

"Oh. Well, maybe tomorrow." She handed Ms. Valerius the tea she requested.

"Seems like every day gets duller and duller. Maybe it's an older thing."

Christine hummed. "Okay, I'm on my way to my job interview. Wish me luck."

"You'll do fine, sweetie."

"Thanks." Christine pulled on her purse and slipped out the door. "Bye. Have a nice day at work."

"Oh, you too dear." And then she was gone.

Christine hated job interviews.

She had recently been fired from her job of working at Barnes & Nobles. She hadn't been doing a good enough job at organizing the books and she kept constantly reading them in her free time without paying. She thought she would have gotten a little more freedom in the book store since she worked there but apparently not. Now she was on her way to work at Baskin Robins; an ice cream shop. It wasn't exciting at all but it beat putting books in shelves. It was also all she could get. For the past six to seven years, she had been struggling with getting a job. She had been in taking a music major in college but that didn't work out so well.

She shuddered off all melancholy feelings. Looking up at the dreary sky, she saw it was overcast; her favorite kind of weather. Maybe it was a sign. She needed to make a good first impression. Her hair was wrapped neatly in a ponytail and she hoped they would tell that she did that knowing to be more sanitary. She wanted to seem like she knew what she was doing. Even if she herself didn't have a clue.

After walking the short distance the ice cream shop was from her house, she went to open the doors to the ice cream shop but they wouldn't budge. She took a look at their hours and saw they opened at 7:00. She glanced at her watch which was eight minutes slow. 6:33. She banged her fist on the door. They had told her to be there at 6:45. She banged on the doors again. "Hello! Is someone in there? Hello!"

A worried face appeared at the see-through door and Christine jumped. The mouth of the worker appeared to be saying " _We're closed!"_

Christine shook her head. "I'm here for the job! The job!" She practically yelled. Great first impression. The worked slowly opened the clear doors and snuck her head out.

"Are you Christine?"

"Yes and I was-"

"He said you'd come! Great! Come right in." Christine was met with a blast of coolness in the face as the doors were opened wider. She had always loved going there with her father and the smell of the ice cream triggered sad nostalgia. She faked a big smile on her face.

"Sorry about that. I have the worst memory, could you believe that? Follow me." The worker gestured with her hands and went around the side to let Christine in through the side door. As a little girl, Christine had always wondered what it would be like to go in the back. As she entered the dim-lit room, she felt a wave of nervousness yet excitement hit her. She felt as if she had just got a job at Disneyland and was going into one of the rooms that controlled the rollercoasters. Not that she had ever gone to Disneyland.

"Right through here." The chirpy worker directed. She had wavy blonde hair and bright blue eyes. She was quite pretty. Her smiling was also reassuring. Christine made her way through into the room and saw a man sitting at a desk. It all looked thrown together as if they had just got the news and put it all together quickly. There were ice creams stains all throughout the room from Cotton Candy to Blue Raspberry to Cherry Blast. The desk had only one paper on it and the man behind the desk seemed stressed out.

He stood up to meet her, holding out his hand.

Christine reached out and shook it. "Nice to meet you Mister…"

"Just call me Joe. Pleasure is all mine. Please. Sit."

She sat down at the chair on the other side of the desk and glanced at the blonde worker.

"You can go, Meg." Joe spoke and _Meg_ scurried away. Christine gulped as he opened up her resume. "So, Christine… _Dah-ee?_ "

"Daae."

"Heh. Okay then." He grinned and she felt herself warm up to him. After talking to him for a few minutes about her high qualities and how she could help them out, he stood up. "Congratulations. You've just got yourself a job at Baskin Robins." He pantomimed a microphone and held it up to her face. "How do you feel?"

"Ecstatic! Thank you so much!" She wanted to hug him.

"Heh. Never had someone so psyched to get a job at an ice cream shop. Now go find Meg and ask her how to work the machines. You'll get the hang of it. You seem like a fast learner. Can't say the same for Meg."

"Thank you. Again." She blushed and went out to go find Meg. The blonde was currently talking to a family of five.

"Excuse me, Miss, but my son here ordered a rainbow sherbet ice cream in a cup, but you put it in a cone." The father explained, obviously upset. She watched Meg as she took the cone from the man's hands, grabbed a cup, then threw the ice cream into it.

She handed it back to him and gave him a smile. "Here." She said through her teeth.

"Thanks." The man said and he and his family left. Meg turned to her and huffed.

"People." She shrugged and Christine cleared her throat.

"Can you help me with learning how to use the machines and stuff?" Silence. She continued. "Uh, he told me to ask you. To show me." More silence. "So… could you show me?"

Meg seemed in though and she swerved her mouth to the side. "Yeah. Yeah, I guess I could. First you need to put your hair in a net though."

Christine groaned. So much for her first impressions. She didn't even know how she had gotten the job. They must have been low on employees. Meg paid no heed to Christine's sudden mood change. "Pay attention." After showing Christine the basics of how to use the blenders and such, she then explained how to use the toppings like chocolate or caramel.

"Now if someone asks for nuts, make sure they specify. We have almonds, peanuts, and other stuff I can't remember. Then there is rainbow sprinkles or chocolate. They taste the same but costumers like decoration. We also got two types of cherries. Seed and no seed. Gotta specify everything."

"This is... _alot_ to remember."

Meg snorted again. "Yeah. But you'll get used to it." She then explained how to talk to costumers and how to serve them. Soon enough, a young couple came in and walked up to the counter.

"I think you've got this one, Chris." Christine felt weird at her the nickname but nonetheless still put on a huge smile as she approached the costumer.

* * *

There was something incredibly unnerving about the whole thing.

He had been waiting for almost four minutes, the lateness highly uncharacteristic for his partner. He tapped his fingers on the table in a repetitive motion. It had been going on for months, months and months but nothing had happened. Nothing. It was starting to get the best of him. Everything seemed to be a ticking bomb, waiting for the right movement so it could explode. Nadir stood still.

"My apologies would only worsen your inconvenience."

His head snapped upwards and his shoulders sagged in disappointment. "I don't need your sympathy, Nathaniel."

"I wasn't offering any, though it does seem like you need some." Nathaniel whisked into the kitchen. There was no denying it, Nadir and Nathaniel were quite good friends, but they got on each other's nerves sometimes. Nadir was more soft-spoken and patient, but Nathaniel was more fast-paced, usual getting the job done quicker. But, they were an average team. When it was time to get serious, they got serious.

Nathaniel had short, messy brown hair and his skin was a soft white. He had a prominent jawline and cheek bones, and a distinguishing nose. His eyes were a dark brown. He had good looks and used to be very charming. Nathaniel used to bring home a new girl every night, but that was _before_ the accident. Now he was falling apart. Nadir sighed. "Have you… gotten any information?"

Nathaniel scoffed while pulling a Bud Light from the fridge. "What do you think?"

He didn't respond. He knew what the answer was. It was the same disappointing noun that kept echoing in his mind.

"What else could we be possibly doing?" Nathaniel continued.

"I don't know… but we can't leave this area. It has the highest income and we have got to figure out why." Nadir picked up the newspaper. "Is this todays?"

"I don't know. I think Claude got it. You can ask him."

Nadir saved the trouble and just looked at the date. March 26. Today. He flipped through some of the pages, a lot of them going over the most recent deaths. His heart would have dropped if it had been the first or maybe even fifth time he read it, but now he had lost count. Hundreds and hundreds of people every day… then something caught his eye.

"Hey, take a look at this."

Nathaniel came over and Nadir squinted as he read aloud the small words.

 _Hospital makes new donation solely through music at the Mercedes Edwards Theatre._

Intrigued, he read on. There had been a short article written by a Ned something. _After the horror of death has taken 221 people this month due to the same unknown illness, the Saint Agnes Hospital has decided to try a different tactic. The Changy's have decided to have concerts in its honor in order to raise money. They will be having bands audition for them March 31. Any money the concerts make will be going directly to the hospital. To audition or for more information, call 1-800-METBAND._

Nathaniel, who had read it over Nadir's shoulder, groaned. "Now they are just getting more people involved. The less people the better. Now we will have to deal with annoying-"

" _No._ You know what this means?" Nadir felt his heart clench in pain. "More people going here means more people drinking the water which means more people dying." There was silence for a while.

"They… invite people to stop the illness… in the place where the risk is most high. The travesty of it all is almost _laughable._ "

Nadir didn't feel like laughing. He stood up. "I have to tell him."

Only, no one had noticed the shadow already hidden in the room. _He_ stood in the corner of the room, arms crossed. "I heard everything." His voice resonated throughout the room causing Nadir's head to shoot up. The room was already partly dark and he could only make out his silhouette and eyes.

"What are… what are we to do?" his heart thundered in his chest.

Nathaniel joined in. "Maybe we… we could… try to explain to the police again?" he then quickly added, "But this time the full extent or find a health inspector and explain-"

"No, no. We will not do that. All that will do is waste time we don't have." The voice was almost annoyed. "The government is already well aware of it all and is trying to keep hush about it to not cause any panic. Us going and making a big scene about it will just disrupt their precious peace."

Nadir ran his fingers through his hair. "What do you propose we do?"

"Nothing. Continue dealing with it as we have been."

"We can't just do _nothing_." Nathaniel said, upset he had been shot down. "More and more people will be dying because of this. We need to put a stop to the concerts. What about the people who chose to drink from the water fountains?"

"There's nothing we can do. We will return to what we were doing."

"But nothing was happening!"

"Then we will continue to do nothing for the time being."

"But we can't just sit and watch-" but he was already gone. Nathaniel sighed went over to one of the cupboards, grabbing a glass, then slammed it on the table. Nadir was surprised it didn't shatter. "Everything he says goes. Even if he's wrong."

"How do you know he's wrong?" Nadir challenged. "What else could we seriously do?"

Nathaniel poured himself the Bud Light into the glass, making Nadir's eyes water from the smell. "I'm going to talk to the police."

"No. Don't do that. That will… that will just make the situation worse."

"Even more people are going to be dying… and there's _nothing_ we can do. _Nothing_." There was that sickening noun again.

Before Nadir could respond to him, they heard a slight call from upstairs. If you weren't paying attention, you wouldn't have heard it, but Nathaniel and Nadir knew better as they both exchanged glances and made their way upstairs. They entered one of the bedrooms where a single candle was light.

"One or two?" Nadir spoke rapidly, his words tangled up.

"Two." The soft voice replied. Nadir and Nathaniel both visibly relaxed, letting out huge amounts of air. "I heard arguing down."

"Oh… oh," Nathaniel spoke, "Claude, it's nothing." He scratched his forehead. "Just talking about the whole… uh, situation."

"I heard. Um… what are we, uh, going to gonna do about the, um, con….con..."

Nadir paled. "Concert?"

"Yes. Con-cert. What are you guys gonna do about it?"

"We don't know yet." Nathaniel sat down next to Claude. "How are your legs feeling?"

"Better. I can walk better. I think. What about the concert?" he repeated.

"We'll figure something out. Don't worry. I can't believe you heard us from all the way up here." Nadir faked a grin.

"If only… my legs were as better as my ears. Right?"

"Right." Nathaniel smiled. Even though the joke was morbid, it was a sign his brain was able to register more things as a joke. "But you're getting there."

Claude nodded. "Take a look at the paper again. Maybe some _good_ news?"

Nadir scanned the paper. "Nope. Just politics and sports."

"Oh… well, maybe next time?"

Nadir shook his head. Maybe tomorrow. Then maybe the next day. Maybe the next week. Next month. Seconds to minutes to hours to days to weeks to months to years. It was always _maybe next time._

But deep down he knew that _next time_ was all that they had.


	2. Submarine

After working together for a few days, they had already become close friends. Christine was never one for friends and usually kept to herself, but Meg always seemed to lighten the mood, not to mention talk nonstop. From what Meg had said, there were only 3 other employees; a short, fat red-haired man named Fred, a pretty middle-aged Asian woman named Susan, and a Latina teenager trying to earn enough money to buy a car named Lillian. It was rounding 9:20 and Meg said it was Christine's turn to take a break.

"You've done a great job so far. Go take a nap or something. Your break is 30 minutes."

She had gladly obliged. Before she got the job, she often imagined herself sneaking eating ice cream on her free time, but now Christine would rather think about anything else than ice cream. She decided to just take a nice little walk and returned seven minutes before her break was over, not having much else to do. When she walked in, she saw Meg talking to a costumer. Not that it was wrong, but she seemed to be deeply in conversation with him. Not just chatting.

She made her way up to the front and went around the side door. Meg glanced at her and smiled. "Oh, Christine come here!" Meg waved her arm towards her.

"Hello." She said quietly and the man laughed. He seemed around either late 20s or early 30s. His eyes were a greyish-blue and he had longer, darker hair that almost reached his chin.

"This is Philip. Philip, this is Christine."

He waved his hand and she waved back. "Hey."

"Philip is one of our most frequent costumers. He comes in here every Tuesday and orders the same thing."

"Which is?"

"Peanut butter chocolate with rainbow sprinkles." He said proudly.

Meg leaned in. "What'd I tell you about people and their decorations?"

"Hey!" he laughed. He seemed to be a fellow with a positive spirit but there was something incredibly familiar about him.

"I'm sorry." Christine started. "Have we… met before? You seem so familiar."

"Yeah, I could say the same. But I can't pinpoint it." Right at that moment, the door's bells jingled, letting them know someone entered. A man with dirty blonde hair and blue eyes made his way to Philip. Christine felt something tug at her heart strings.

"Phil, come on dude. You're taking forever. You know Dad's been waiting for-" He began than stopped when his eyes met Christine's. "Hi." He usually only saw Phillip conversing with the blonde… he had no clue who the brunette was but she seemed incredibly familiar.

"I'm almost done." He slapped his friend on the back. "Raoul, this is Meg's friend, Christine. This is my brother, Raoul."

The name instantly rang bells in Christine's head and she had a small flashback of her and a little boy when she was younger. _Raoul…_

"Christine… Daae?" He suddenly asked in awe.

"Yeah… Raoul… Changy? From grade school?" she thought really hard. Yes. She remembered him.

"Oh my God… oh my God! It's been _years_. Oh my God, I can't believe it's you." he exclaimed.

She remembered him.

It was the first day of third grade and she was still dealing with her mother's illness. It had been hard on the whole family to hear it was terminal and there was nothing they could do. _Could have happened to anyone._ The doctors had said. _Just somewhere in the gene pool she happened to carry the cancer gene._ Another nurse was less sympathetic. _Did she miss a day of church or something? Ha. I'm just joshin' ya._

After hearing that, Christine had made it to go to church every Sunday.

But she remembered Raoul on the first day of third grade. It was during lunch. Her father had packed her a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, some apple slices, a pack of peanut butter cookies, and a chocolate milk carton. She remembered it all distinctly. She wasn't hungry though, and only sipped on her drink. A little boy, just a little taller than her came by her and played with his fingers.

"Hi. Um, could I have one of your cookies? If you don't want to it's okay." He quickly muttered out in his small voice.

"No, you can have it all." She shoved her lunch pack to him and rested her head in her arms.

"Thanks!" he grabbed them excitedly and began to leave but noticed her quite attitude. "Um, are… are you okay?"

Without a reply, Christine bursted into tears.

The boy sat down next to her and shifted uncomfortably. "What's wrong?"

"My mom. She…" she sucked in a breath, "she is really, really sick. She might die." She whispered then wiped a tear off her cheek.

"Oh… I'm sorry. Mine died a year ago. In April." He spoke low and she looked up at him through her tears. "The doctors said she had diabetes."

Wiping her cheek she whispered, "What's a diabetes?"

"My dad said it means she ate too many sweets." The boy shrugged.

Christine glanced at her chocolate milk with sudden disgust. "My mom has cancer. My dad said it was just bad luck."

"Here." The little boy said and reached into his pocket. After searching around, handed her a piece of lint and a penny. "On the TV, she always are saying they need money for cancer. And I found this penny facing up. It's a sign of good luck."

"Thank you." she whispered with tears in her eyes. "You can have my apples too if you want."

He made a face. "No thanks."

"I'm Christine."

"I'm Raoul."

"You don't like apples?"

"Nope. But anytime I have an apple, I'll save it for you."

And they were friends ever since. They didn't have the same class in third grade but they saw each other at recess. Christine had one other friend but she kept to herself and was very quiet. Raoul, on the other hand, had his 6th grade brother, Philip, and no one messed with him. Raoul had a bunch of friends though, but he found himself liking Christine's company. Maybe it was because she had cried on their first meaning, but he always felt very close to her.

"Christine!" Raoul yelled one nice winter day in fourth grade.

"Yeah?" she called back.

"Guess what?"

'What?"

"No, you have to guess!"

"Oh, I don't know."

"No, you gotta guess!"

"Just tell me!"

"My dad said you can stay with us for winter vacation!"

Her eyes widened. "Really?"

"Yeah! Did you ask your dad?"

"I will. Hold on!" She ran to her dad's old beat up Ford, where he had been waiting to pick her up. She begged and pleaded to go with Raoul and he finally gave in. That winter, they went up to a snow lodge. Apparently his family owned one side of the slopes. They went ice skating, fishing, and told scary stories at the fire. One day, Christine had made the mistake of walking on thin ice. She didn't fall through but her red scarf had slid off and into the water.

"No! No!" she cried. It was her fathers and she knew he would be very upset with her.

"Christine! What's wrong?" Raoul shouted across the yard.

"My scarf! It fell into the water." She sobbed. Without a second thought, he ran over to her, dug his fists down in the ice, and grabbed her scarf. It disturbed the ice and caused it to break resulting in them falling in. They both screeched at the cold water but were able to make it out. Once they were warmed up, she started to cry, mourning the loss of her scarf, when Raoul presented it to her. She had then cried with joy and kissed him on the shoulder. She wore it for the rest of winter. As the years passed, Christine made a few other friends and so did Raoul, but they remained close. Until the end of sixth grade came.

"Raoul? What's wrong?" she said at his drab appearance. His hair was messy and his eyes were red.

"I have to leave this town."

"What?" she gasped. "Why?"

"My dad married another chick and now we have to move because she wants to live at the beach."

"But you can't live _at_ the beach! It'll get cold and wet."

"That's what I said but no one listens to me."

"I listen to you."

"I know you do. I'll miss you."

"You'll be back… right?"

"No…" He shook his head, "I'll be gone forever."

"But you can't go! I'll miss you so much, Raoul."

"I miss you already, Christine."

"Please, Raoul. Don't go." She sobbed.

"I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry." And they cried together.

And then he was gone. And he had been nothing but a memory until today.

"Okay, since now I'm just chopped liver and since you have like…" she glanced at the clock, "five minutes left, go enjoy the rest of your break, Chris." Meg broke Christine out of her thoughts. Christine went back out the door and ran into Raoul, a mix of emotions on his face mirroring her own.

"Raoul… I can't believe it's actually you." She actually couldn't. She cleared her throat. "Now I remember. Philip's your brother."

"Yeah. I didn't know you were working at a Dairy Queen."

"Actually, it's Baskin Robins." She shifted her weight on her feet.

"Oh. Heh. Phil likes the stuff more than me. It's just crazy that we ran into each other after like, what? Eleven years?"

"Around that. Yeah. Maybe even twelve. It was sixth grade." Then it was awkward. She wanted to hug him, but she didn't know if that's what he wanted too. So instead they both just stood there doing odd grins. When suddenly Raoul broke the silence:

"How's your father?"

Christine felt her body involuntarily twitch. "He passed away three years ago."

"Oh! I'm so, so sorry, Christine."

"Yeah, it's fine. How's yours?"

"He's fine." Raoul leaned in. "I can't tell you yet but he's the reason we are back in town."

"Oh. There are only so many possibilities." She giggled and he laughed. She had missed his laugh, even though now it was more deep and… nicer. "Gosh, it's so great to see you again."

"Ditto. We need to hang out. When are you off?"

"Actually, this is my first day of working here. I think I'm off at 2:00 today."

"Congrats! That's awesome. Now you get to help Phil indulge in his frozen fantasies. Would you like to go out?"

She blushed. "I'd love to. Perhaps not _Apple_ bee's though, huh?"

"You will never let me live that down."

"Do you still not like them?"

"They're okay." He shrugged. "You still have my penny?"

"I have no idea. I might but I don't know how I'd know it was yours if I found it. After my… father passed, I moved into his old co-workers house."

He frowned. "Who?"

"Ms. Valerius. Remember her? She used to give us those gross butterscotch candies."

"Kind of. I don't think she liked me."

"Whatever. I'm sure she thought you were a nice young boy."

"I think I spit in her coffee one time."

She laughed. They continued talking for a bit and exchanged numbers. Raoul said he'd call her in a bit so then they could hang out.

"Christine! Break's over!" Meg interrupted.

"It's my first week." She shrugged. "I better go."

"It was r _eally_ nice seeing you again, Christine."

"You too, Raoul." She grinned and went back into the shop. Meg gave Philip a smile and then winked at Christine.

"Raoul Changy, huh? Who knew?"

She ignored her. "It's your turn for a break."

"Susan won't be here for another hour… Think you can handle it by yourself for thirty minutes?"

"I'll be fine."

"Alright. I'll be back." And then she left Christine alone with her thoughts.

Seeing Raoul had sparkled a bunch of old feelings but it also sparked a new one she wasn't very familiar with. She didn't want to name it. He had changed so much. He was so handsome now… and she could tell he was confident by the way he carried himself. She was snapped out of her thoughts when the door jingled again. She shot her head up, hoping it was Raoul for some weird reason, but it wasn't.

Instead, an unfamiliar handsome man with messy hair walked up to the counter. He shot her a half-grin. "Hey."

She forced a weird smile. "How may I help you today, sir?"

"You could help me by giving me your number." He continued after seeing her shocked face. "Hey. I'm kidding. Is Meg here?"

She felt herself slowly shake her head. "No, she's on her break."

He tsked. "Do you know when she'll be back?"

"Um." Christine glanced at her watch. "She left like three minutes ago so she should be back in about a half-hour." She rubbed her arm as he just gazed at her. "Do you want me to give her a message or something?"

"No. No. I just didn't know they had hired a new employee."

She blushed insanely and couldn't meet his eyes. "Sir, is there, uh, something you would like from here?"

"Call me Simon. And yeah, I'll have a hot fudge sundae. Extra fudge." He said, the words seemingly falling off his tongue. She wordlessly nodded and went about getting it for him. She set his sundae on the counter but when he handed her the money, their hands brushed. She shivered. He gave off a different vibe than Raoul did. Raoul had a sweet, playful energy, _Simon_ 's energy was playful but more… seductive and sneaky. Like a fox from Aesop's Tales. She didn't trust him.

"Thanks…" he looked at her nametag "… _Christine_." He said when he grabbed his cup. "I'll be back."

She shuddered when he left and she shook her arms. That guy creeped her out. She jumped when Meg came back 35 minutes later.

"You were supposed to be here eight minutes ago."

"Whoa. Sorry. I was on the phone-"

"There was this creepy guy asking for you."

"A creepy guy? What? What'd he look like? What was his name?"

"Simon."

"Oh! He's not a creepy guy, Christine. He's my boyfriend."

" _What?_ " she gasped. "Meg, he flirted with me the entire time!"

"Oh, he flirts with everyone. He's funny like that."

"It didn't seem _funny_ to me. It made me uncomfortable."

"I'm sorry. I'll tell him to leave you alone then. But… didn't you see how hot he is?"

"No, I-"

"You didn't find him the least bit attractive?"

Her thoughts went back to his messy hair and strong jawline. She blushed remembering how their fingers touches. "I mean… maybe a bit. But he came off very strong."

Meg shrugged. "He's an extrovert. From what I can tell, you're an introvert. I've heard the two don't mix well."

"I guess not." Another costumer came up. "He said he'd be back. What does that mean?"

"It means he'll be back. What else?" she walked up to the counter. "Hi. How may I help you today, Ma'am?"

"I know. I know. But he could call or text you, but instead he said he would come back here. Doesn't that sound a bit… sketchy?"

"I don't know, Chris." She said as she grabbed the cup as the costumer requested. "He's a handsome sneaky creepy bastard. There's no telling what he'll do. Did you want whipped cream?"

And while Meg seemed to ignore it, there was a chill that followed Christine for the rest of the day.

* * *

She arrived home late that night. Raoul hadn't called and she couldn't get her mind off of that guy who came in earlier. When she walked in she was greeted with Ms. Valerius's worried face.

"Christine! You worried me. But I have news for you!"

It was a lot. "Okay, okay hold on. Let me come in." she came in and shut the door behind her, locking it. Ms. Valerius held up a newspaper. They must have gotten their newspapers back.

"Go to page 6B." Christine took the paper and looked through it.

"What about it?"

"Look." She pointed down at the left corner. _Hospital makes new donation solely through music at the Mercedes Edwards Theatre._

"What about it?" she repeated.

"You play the keyboard, don't you?"

Christine shook her head. "I mean, I know how to play the piano."

"Ha! That's the same thing! Look" she pointed at the page, "They are going to be making bands to make profit. You could join one and do this!"

"But why would I want to…" She stopped when she saw who was in charge of the whole thing. _The Changy's…_ "Is this today's paper?"

"No. It's from yesterday, but the option is still up."

"Why… why would you think I'd want to do this?"

"I know you like music. Your father used to go on and go about how much you loved music, until he died of course."

Christine felt her stomach squeeze.

She continued. "And I know you liked to sing. So whether you were using the keyboard or singing, I thought maybe you'd be interested."

"Thanks." Christine sniffed.

The woman grabbed Christine hand. "You need to let him go."

That caught her off guard. "What? My father?"

"You can never forget, but you can forgive. None of it was your fault. You had no part of it yet it still holds you back even three years later."

"I… don't know what to say." Everything was spinning. She hadn't spoken about this in months.

"I'm just saying you must move on. You can do anything if you put your mind to it. You can't let this one thing keep you from doing it."

"Thank you… Ms. Valerius."

"I mean it. Okay?"

"Okay."

"Now," she hobbled over to the kitchen. "What would you like for dinner? We've got some leftovers from Sunday but we've also got some burritos you can warm up in the oven."

"It's okay. I'm not that hungry." She said shakily.

"Speak up, dear."

"I said, I'm fine. Not hungry." She repeated in a louder voice.

"Alright. You know what to do when you are."

"Yes." And then she ran to her room, tears threatening to fall. The second her door shut, Christine ran to her bed and threw down the dumb newspaper. She grabbed her favorite green blanket and shoved her face into it, in deep thought. She knew it was childish to have a blanket, but it was only for comfort. Her father had gotten it for her.

She remembered how much she loved music. But she didn't want to remember. It triggered other memories she had and it all came crashing down. She had shoved it all in the back of her head, but now it was all flooding back. She had opened the window of a submarine.

And she was sinking.

Again.

She shuddered again, remembering her college years. It was all too much at once sprung up on her. She grabbed a glass of water that had been sitting on her dresser near her bed. It was warm but she needed something. After a few deep breathes, Christine held up her decisions.

Either she could try out for this theatre band thing, see Raoul more often, and pursue music as her father would have wanted with a high possibility of having a really good time… or, she could continue her poor excuse of a job at Baskin Robins and keep seeing that weird guy. With a sigh, she opened up her laptop and looked up "Virtual Keyboard Online Free."

After hitting a few keys and hearing the music resonate in the air, she grabbed her phone, seeing Raoul never called, and dialed 1-800-METBAND.


	3. Baby Steps

So I am using Leroux characters but I prefer Christine with brown hair and Meg with blonde hair. I also like Raoul with dirty blonde hair… and no moustache. I usually imagine Christine as Sierra Boggess with a mix of Harriet Jones. Meg is book Meg but with blonde hair. Raoul is Hadley Fraser. You are free to imagine whatever character however you like, though. I want you all to be able to enjoy the story. Just giving an insight on how I see them. Read and review!

 **Warmth!**

She stood outside the theatre wearing a big, green coat. It was her fathers. It was helping to remind her that she was doing this for him.

She _was_ doing this for him.

Taking a deep breath, she recalled her and Meg's conversation an hour ago.

" _Meg. You know that whole donation thing the MET is doing?"_

" _Mercedes Edwards Theatre? Yeah."_

" _I… I think I'm gonna audition to be in one of the bands."_

 _Meg looked amused. "This boring ice cream job not enough to fulfill your desires? Quench your thirst?"_

" _No! I just… well. I'm kind of doing it for my dad. He died a while ago but he loved music and… and I know he would of liked to watch me."_

" _I was just kidding, Chris. Go ahead. When is it?"_

" _In an hour."_

" _Oh, shit." Meg laughed and Christine felt her nerves tense up. "Don't worry, you'll be great! You know what? I might audition to be on the crew. Back in high school, I did the lights for Peter Pan."_

Now it was an hour later, and the weight of the keyboard case was getting heavier and heavier. Ms. Valerius had a friend who said Christine could have it. Christine felt herself shaking as she walked in through the doors. A man with a grey beard greeted her and she nodded back. Her oversized coat now seemed too thin.

She walked into the room she was supposed to go in and was met with a wave of people. Some old, some young, some in chairs, other's standing. Some laughed really loud. Some kept to the corners and were quite. Some came with friends. Some came alone.

She went up to one of the tables and got an application.

 _DATE_ : 3-31-2017 _FULL NAME_ : Christine Elaine Daae

 _AGE_ : 22 _DOB_ : 10-28-1995

 _GENDER_ : Female

 _CHOICE OF INSTRUMENT_ : Keyboard

 _ANY EXPERIENCE_ : I played the piano at church sometimes.

 _WHAT DO YOU DO IN YOUR FREE TIME?_ Read or take walks.

 _WHO ARE YOUR FAVORITE MUSICAL ARTISTS?_ The Sugarcubes are my favorite band but my favorite opera is Rigoletto.

 _AVE YOU EVER LOST SOMEONE DUE TO AN ILLNESS_?

She crinkled her forehead at this question. Was it any of their business? Why was that even in there? It had nothing to do with the fact of being in a band. She marked that one "Parents." She ignored the chill she felt. As she finished it putting in her phone number and answering other tedious questions, she felt annoyed at her handwriting. She usually wrote in cursive and was very good at it, but this said to _PLEASE PRINT_. Her regular handwriting was not that good. She turned it in and got a number for her to wear.

#92

Nine was her favorite number so she took it upon herself as good luck. She stuck the sticker on her shirt and made a quick prayer.

A few hours passed and Christine's anxiety was swept away. She know was tired and ready to get this over with. She hadn't played with her phone because she felt it made her look rude. Plus she didn't want anyone thinking she was just another teen who never got off their phone. Instead she was a confident adult who came in today in honor of her father.

Yet, when her number was called, she practically squeaked. She made her way up to the stage, ignoring the hundreds of eyes watching her every movement. She was doing this for her father. She was doing this for her father.

"Miss.… Day?" a male voice called out.

"Daae." She kindly corrected with a smile even though in her head she shouted "I wrote down how to pronounce it on the paper, you asshole!"

"What are you here for today, Ms. Daae?" the male judge asked. He had dark skin and glasses.

"I… would like to join a band."

"And what part would you like to play?"

"The keyboard."

"Ah, yes. A lot of people don't think about it but the keyboard is essential to the band. The drums are the beat, the guitars are the rhythm, the voice is the puzzle complete, but who is the soul? The keyboard."

"Heh. Yeah." She clasped her hands together and gave a nervous smile.

At the lack of her enthusiasm, he waved his hand. "Show us what you can do."

She nodded and took out her keyboard, plugging it into the projector. After hitting a few notes to warm her fingers up, she began to play a simple song with an upbeat rhythm. When she finished, two people clapped.

"Thank you, Ms. Daae. We will call you if we'd like to see you again."

Feeling defeated, she packed up her stuff and left the stage. She began to make her way out the doors when she heard a familiar voice. " _Christine!_ " It was getting closer. "Christine!"

She spun around only to be face to face with Raoul.

"Raoul! Hi."

He was out of breath. "Hey. I can't believe you're here. Hey," he held out his phone," You must have put in the wrong number. Every time I call, I'm met with a fax machine." She looked at his phone and saw that she messed up one number, putting a 7 instead of 1.

"Oh Raoul I am so sorry! I messed it up. Hold on."

"No problem. I just didn't want you to think I was a jerk or something."

"Oh. Yeah." She had gotten so close to deleting his number but lied to herself he was just busy. She relieved to find out it was her own ignorance and mentally remembered to yell at herself later.

"Was that you up there? Just now?"

"Playing the keyboard? Yeah."

"You sounded great! I've never heard you play before."

"Yeah well, I don't think I'm gonna get a call back."

"Why not?" he seemed confused.

"Because I wasn't that good, and there are people way better than me."

"No. I'll talk to them. You'll get in." She suddenly very violently remembered Raoul's father was in charge of the whole thing.

"No, Raoul. No."

"What? Why not?"

"Because it wouldn't be fair. I don't want to get in just because you told them to."

"No, I won't force them. I will just… _persuade_ them. Nicely."

"Please. For me? I want to know I did this on my own."

He thought for a second. "Fine. But you have to let me take you out to lunch after giving me a fake number."

She smiled. "Alright. As long as you promise to call me later."

"It's a deal?"

"Deal."

* * *

"Sir, we're going to have to ask you to leave."

Nathaniel groaned, sweat beading on his forehead. "No. You need to listen to me. It could mean life or death!"

The man spoke into his headset. "Security needed at post 8."

"Oh, no. Don't call the security. Don't you care that hundreds of people's lives could be at stake?"

He didn't get an answer. The security guards on the other hand were very kind to say "Do not come back in this area or we will call the police."

"Go ahead! Call the cops! I already tried. See if they care!" Nathaniel spit as they kicked him out. Nadir met him on the sidewalk with a smug look.

"Well?"

"Do you even have to ask?"

"Alright. Finish your little tantrum. We've found something."

Nathaniel's eyes widened. "What?"

"You know the Savemart a few blocks down? All the water bottles were replaced and the letter V was carved into the floor."

He ran his fingers through his hair. "Did anyone drink any of it?"

"A few people bought some until a worker noticed the labels were changed."

"Now what do we do?"

"I suggest we still stay at this place but keep an eye out."

"Is that what _he_ suggested?"

"Nathaniel-"

"Why doesn't he ever make direct contact with me? He treats me like an annoying child he's forced to be around."

Nadir cracked his knuckles. "Hell, I have no idea. But I follow what he says. He's really smart you know."

"It doesn't matter." He huffed. "What are we to do now?"

"Nothing."

* * *

"Yes! Yes! And then-" he bursted out laughing, unable to finish his sentence.

Christine finished it for him "Then she told us if we could be on time every day for a whole week, we'd get a prize." She giggled.

"I can't remember! Did we do it?"

"Nope. We were 20 minutes late Monday." That just made them laughed even harder. Christine's dad used to drive the both of them to school and they had always been late.

When they sobered up, Raoul took a long look at Christine, admiring the way her curly brown hair fell in front of her eyes. Before she could move it, he reached over and wiped it away.

"You know, I forgot how much I enjoyed spending time with you."

She blushed. "Yeah, me too. I'm really glad I get to see you again, though."

"Well we will just have to see each other again, won't we?"

"That is possible." It was three when she auditioned. It was six now, and it got dark earlier since the time change.

"Maybe Thursday night… at 8. At Casa Corona." It was a popular Mexican restaurant.

She took a sip of her drink. "Is that a date?" she teased.

"I guess it is." He jokingly replied until they both realized the extent of the meaning. Christine blushed and Raoul cleared his throat. "Well, I have overstayed my welcome. I have to get going."

"I'm sure Starbucks doesn't mind you staying a little longer."

"Yeah, but my dad will." He grabbed her hands as he sat up. "I really enjoyed spending time you. Really."

"Me too, Raoul."

He looked into her eyes for just for a moment, cherishing the time with her, then kissed her palm. The warm breeze accompanied the two and her curls flew through the air. "Are you sure you don't need a ride?"

"I'm sure." She smiled.

"Until next time." He smiled and she smiled back. He then turned away from her and left her, a feeling of something pooling in his stomach. He couldn't wait for it to be Thursday.

As he got in his car, his phone began to ring. It was Philip. "Hey. What's up?"

" _Hey, what are you doing?"_

"Just about to drive home. Is something wrong?"

" _Nah. But get this: today at auditions, there was this guy protesting about this, like, poison water or something. He wouldn't leave and we had to get the security involved, man."_

"That's crazy, dude. But hey, speaking about auditions, do you, uh, remember a Christine Daae?"

" _The girl we saw at Baskin Robins? Yeah, she auditioned."_

"I'm gonna need you to do a favor for me."

" _Depends. Does it help you get the girl?"_

"Philip! It doesn't matter. It would make her happy and that's all that matters. But you can't tell her I did this."

" _You haven't told me what it is yet."_

"You need to give her a part in a band."

" _What does she play, again?"_

"The keyboard."

" _Ah. Yeah. Okay. That can be arranged. Do you know what number she was?"_

Raoul grinned. She had forgotten to take off her number and had worn it throughout the day. "92." It was the little things like that which made him miss her even more.

" _Okay. It's done. But you better pay me back."_

"How about letting you win at Mario Cart?"

" _If you lose at Mario Cart, that will not be because you let me, it will be because I'm great at the game."_

"Yeah. Tell that to my high score."

" _Do you want me to do this for you or not?"_

"Yes. Yes, please. I'm sorry. I need you-"

" _Jeez, Raoul. I knew you liked the girl and missed her a lot but dang."_

"Cut it out man. It would mean a lot if you did this."

" _I'll do it. Not for the girl, but because she means that much to you. And for my Mario Cart high score."_

"Thank you." They then finished up the conversation and Raoul hung up with a relieved grin. Losing his high score was worth it.

Definitely worth it.


	4. Innocence

Thank you all so much for the reviews! I'm glad you all are enjoying it so far. Now it's time for a little trouble. Keep up the comments! Read and review! :)

 **Warmth!**

" _Ma'am? Ma'am? Are you still there?"_

Christine was froze with utter disbelief. The phone almost fell from her hand but she maintained an even grip on it.

"Could…" she swallowed thickly, "Could you please repeat that?"

" _Yes. There is a callback scheduled the fourth of March at 10:00 AM for a Christine Daae. Is that okay or would another date be acceptable?"_

"Are… are you sure you have the _right_ Christine?"

"… _Is this Christine Daae?"_

"Yes…"

" _Were you number, um… 92?"_

She licked her lips. _"_ Y-yes."

"Then yes. This call is for you. Unless you would not like to come to the audition in which your appointment can be canceled-"

"No!" she then said more calmly, "No. No, it will be quite alright. I will be there." Then she hung up.

Still shaking, she set her phone down and put her face in her hands. The fourth of March… that was in four days. Ms. Valerius knocked at her door, causing her to jump. But she heard herself say "Come in."

"There's someone- Oh. Is something wrong?"

"No, no, no. I just… Oh god."

"What is it?"

"I got a callback… for the theatre donation thing."

"Oh, that's wonderful news!" the woman smiled. Her smile was warming.

"Yeah, but I am so nervous! I did it for my father, but I didn't think I'd get this far. What if I embarrass myself?"

Ms. Valerius frowned. "Is that the worst thing that could happen?"

"No… well, maybe. I don't know. I might… accidentally fall of the stage and get hurt or…"

"You could. But you could also twist your ankle working at that scary ice cream job. Stop and smell the roses Christine. Everything will be fine. All in good time."

"Thanks."

"Now, for the reason I came in here, there is someone here to see you."

"Who is it?"

"Blonde girl."

"What? Oh! Yeah, I'll go let her in." she jumped up and ran to the door where Meg was standing out there. It was weird not seeing her in her uniform. "Hey! How'd you find my address?"

Meg slyly grinned as she made her way into the house. "I may have looked into Joe's files and found where you lived."

"Meg! Isn't that illegal?"

"Doesn't matter. I want to hear _everything_."

Christine's heart skipped. "What are you talking about?" Had Raoul told Philip about their date? Did he tell Meg?

"Your audition! How'd it go?"

She let out a breath she'd been holding. "Oh Meg! I got a callback!"

She gasped. "That's so cool! Way to go, Chris!" she then hugged her and they giggled together. Christine suddenly remembered Ms. Valerius in the hallway.

"Come. Meet my... uh, guardian." She led Meg to where Ms. Valerius was and introduced them. "Meg, this is Ms. Valerius, my guardian. Ms. Valerius, this is Meg, my co-worker and friend." They exchanged pleasantries and then Christine led Meg to her room. She was slightly embarrassed.

Had she known she was going to have company, she would have cleaned it up. Her room was bland and messy. Shirts were thrown on the floor. The walls were stark white, not a single poster marred any of it. A bed with white sheets and a green blanket rested in the middle of the room. A wooden dresser was right next to it, the only thing on that was a picture of her father and her. There was a nightlight in the sockets and a bookshelf full of books, but besides that, it was rather dull.

One of the lights in the room, flickered. "Sorry about the mess. I didn't know anyone was coming... I haven't had anyone over in a long time."

"No, dude, it's cool. I don't mind. My room looks like a tornado went through it." She laughed.

Christine nervously nodded. "Yeah, well, next time it'll look nice."

"But I didn't come here to talk about your room." Her voice went low. "What's going on between you and Phil's brother?"

Christine paled. "Why? What have you heard?"

"Nothing. It's just that when you guys met at Baskin, you guys seemed to see into each other's souls for a second. What was that about?"

"We used to be really good friends back in elementary school. But then in sixth grade, he had to move away. We were both just… so excited to see each other again after almost 13 years."

Meg was on the edge of her seat. "Are you gonna see him again?" Christine blushed but before she could open her mouth, Meg beat her too it with a gasp. "Christine Daae! You will tell me _everything_!"

After explaining how she had saw him at the audition, then how they went out and made plans for a date, Meg practically squealed with delight.

"Awesome. This is awesome. Dude, where were you in college? Having you around would have made it a hundred times better."

Christine shrugged. "I don't know. Different career choices, I guess."

"We still ended up in the same place though. What was your major? I was going to be an artist. I took all these art classes and stuff."

"That's cool." She said, trying to swerve the conversation away from herself. "Did you paint or draw?"

She frowned. "You didn't answer my question. And paint."

Defeated but still on guard, she quickly answered. "Music."

"Oh. That's cool. What kind of music? The keyboard or like… singing and stuff? Or were you training to be a singing teacher?"

"Just you know…. Singing and stuff. Heh."

"Oh. Cool. Do you still sing?"

"It's…" she swallowed a huge lump in throat. "…not something I do often."

"Yeah, I mean, I sing in the shower but that doesn't make me an Adele, am I right?"

"I guess."

She pat Christine's thigh. "So… do you like any sports? I like the Giants but honestly, I don't get the big deal. Sports are hella boring. I don't know why people care so much and spend so much money."

Christine mentally thanked Meg hugely for leaving it alone. She would have to go back and put the audition in her calendar, but for now, she was perfectly fine sitting there listening to Meg chatter on and on for the time being.

* * *

She was once again standing outside the doors of the theater, but this time, she had more confidence and less worry on her shoulders. She's asked Joe to take the day off to which he agreed as long as she worked the night shift for him. She had agreed but hoped it wasn't on a night her and Raoul wanted to go out. She had been thinking about him more and more lately. He seemed to consume her thoughts, but not in an obsessive way. She checked her phone. She had two messages. One was Raoul.

 _Hey! Sorry I can't be there to support you, but I want to tell you to break a leg! See you at Casa_

Her heart fluttered as she wrote back.

 _Thank you! And yes, can't wait!_

Her second message was Meg.

 _Don't fuck it up! Haha. Kidding. Love you. But really, don't fuck it up._

Christine rolled her eyes and send a smiley face with a tongue sticking out then a red heart.

She put her phone back in her bag and entered the theatre. The same man greeted her, but with a smile this time in which she returned. She only had to wait a few minutes before her number was called. She took a deep breath and made her way up there. The judge's muttered to themselves for a second then gained their focus on her.

"What will you be playing today, Ms. Daae?"

Surprised they got her name right, she smiled and told them the name of her song.

"Whenever, you're ready, Christine."

She then played the piece and this time when she finished, she felt a bit better. What had changed? Was the song better? Was it her confidence? People always said more confidence makes a person more attractive.

After hearing the pencil scratch on the paper, the man spoke: "Congratulation, Christine. You have earned the part."

She nearly jumped out of her skin. "Just like that?"

"Just like that."

"Oh… oh! Well, thank you so much!"

"You will be a part of the band _Premadona_. Go over and meet George. He will explain everything." He pointed to a man with a long brown beard. He waved at her. She wanted to wave back. She felt like she was walking on clouds.

"Hi." She said when she came up to George.

"Hey." He panted. He seemed out of breath even though he had just been standing there.

"So… what do I need to learn?"

"Not much."

She frowned. "Well… what _will_ I be learning?"

He sighed, seemingly exhausted. She could see sweat in the armpit of his shirt. "Simple stuff. You'll get a few music sheets and you'll learn what songs you'll be playing and what part-" he suddenly looked abruptly up. "Now while the band is called Premadona, I feel it should actually be called _Prima_ Dona."

"What? Why?"

He leaned towards her. His breath smelled like tuna and she winced. "Because the lead singer of the band is a huge bitch."

Before Christine could recuperate, a girl with medium-length, red hair walked up. She heard her before she saw her. Her heels making noises across the wood floor. "Hello, George." She spoke, her voice pleasant and strong. "I need to speak with you about our new drummer. He keeps making weird remarks and is annoying the hell- who's this?"

"This is Christine."

"And why is she so important to be disrupting our important conversation?" Christine felt embarrassed but angered. She had been talking to him first!

"She… will be your keyboard player."

The woman's smile immediately disappeared. "What?" Before George could repeat she spoke again. "I told them _three_ times I didn't want a keyboard player. Three times! And what do they do? George, what'd they do? And not only is she a keyboard player; she's _female_!"

Christine was confused. "I… don't understand." Her voice sounded timid and weak. Exactly how she felt.

"It's an all-boy band." the girl turned to her. "Except me. _I'm_ supposed to be the only girl in the group but apparently that doesn't seem to go through the judges' heads does it?"

"Charlotte, please." George sounded exhausted. "I'm sure we can figure something out."

"No. It was your job to mark what positions were open. All were filled and you made another one up just to squeeze another nobody in. I'm done."

"Wait!" he shouted when _Charlotte_ made a turn to leave. "Oh God. I'll handle this." Then he bustled over towards her. After a few minutes of Christine awkwardly standing around wondering what she did to make that woman hate her with so much passion, she turned to Christine with a sly grin. "But the real question is, would she do it?"

Sudden anxiety filled every part of her body.

Charlotte took a few steps towards her. "Christine, is it? Christine, if you were to join my band, you'd have to masquarde as a boy. Do you think you could do that?"

Dress… as a guy? " _What_?" Her anxiety was coupled with utter confusion. She made a glanced at the judges whom were watching her but quickly looked away when Christine met their eyes.

"See! See! She gets it!" George butted in. "She can wear hoodies and stuff… and stay in the back where the spotlight doesn't hit. She could pull her hair back and you can, uh… call her _Chris_." Every word he spoke made the weight on her heart heavier. She didn't like her nickname anymore.

"Well?" the girl pursed her lips. "Think you can do it? Unless you _don't_ want to be in the band."

"I… I don't want to have to pretend to be a boy." She felt very small in that moment.

Charlotte sighed, not wanting to deal with this. "Then you can't be in the band. Either you be a boy and stay, or be a girl and leave? What will it be?"

She felt tears threatening her eyes. She wanted to say no but she thought of how happy it would have made her father. Time was ticking and she could feel Charlotte's anger radiating off of her. She felt she didn't have a choice but say yes. "Okay."

"Great. See you at rehearsal!" With that she handed Christine a bunch of papers and skittered off. Before George could speak, Christine covered her face with one of her hands as a few tears trickled down. She just couldn't help it. She had just been so emotional lately and under the stress of auditioning it kind of all came tumbling down again.

"They put me in an all-boy band _knowing_ I was a female?"

He was getting antsy and itched his sweaty forehead. "They must have looked at the genders wrong…"

"I r-remember specifically circling female."

"Well maybe they just-"

"Christine! Christine! Hey! Christine!" Christine looked up. It was Meg. Meg ran towards Christine and George made his great escape. "Guess who is now crewing the lights! I'll get to do the spotlight! And that means I might sneak it on you a few times, Ms. Keyboard Player- hey. What's wrong?"

"More like _Mister_." She sniffed. "They put me in an all-boy band and… and now I have to pretend to be a guy to keep the job."

"What? Oh… my god. What the hell? Have you talked to the judges?"

"No but I spoke with the lead singer and she demanded it or else I couldn't be in it."

"And you said you'd do it?" Christine nodded. "Wow… well, I'm proud of you. But I'm also sorry. That really sucks."

"Yeah." Christine wiped her tears of her sleeve. "They said I have to wear boy clothes and put my hair up and stuff."

"Dude, I'm so sorry. You know what? I'll make you a really cute boy. I'll make your hair look cute and stuff and give you some of my boyfriend's clothes he lets me borrow. Even though we know I won't give them back."

She cringed at the thought of wearing Simon's clothes on her body. "Thanks, Meg. It just really… hurts, you know? I mean, I was doing this whole thing for my father to make him proud and now... now it kind of back fired."

"On the bright side, at least you got in, right? They thought you were that good."

She nodded and sucked in a breath. "I guess."

Meg looking around awkwardly. "So, uh, any plans for tonight?"

"Oh yeah. First off, congrats on getting the lighting job. I know you wanted it. I know you'll do great. And who knows, maybe you can sneak the spotlight on me a few times."

Meg grinned and Christine could see a small blush. "What's the second thing?"

* * *

He waited in the table. He watched as the other man he was watching adjusted his sunflower he had set in the middle of the table. He watched as the other man ran his fingers through his hair, took a quick glance if anyone was coming, and then pulled out his phone to look at himself in the camera. He continued to watch as Raoul Changy nervously tapped his fingers against the table, obviously anxious about something.

And it was his job to find out what.

He felt a vibration in his pocket and pulled out his phone. It was disposable and there was no way of tracking it. Just in case.

The second he opened it a voice spoke:

"Anything yet?"

He spoke in a low voice. "Nothing. He's waiting for someone and seems rather impatient about it."

"Well, keep me updated, okay?"

"I'll do what I can, Nathaniel, but I can't make it look obvious."

"Sh! Don't say my name out loud! What if-"

"I've been in the police business for over 30 years, Nathaniel. I know what I'm doing."

"Whatever, _Nadir_. Those 20 long years have gotten to your head at some point. Tell me if anything… Ok. Ok. Claude says hi."

"Tell him I said I'll be there soon and not to worry."

After hearing Nathaniel repeat his words to Claude, Nadir looked up to Raoul and saw a female companion walk towards his table. She had long, curly, brown hair and was wearing a nice dress. She rushed over to him with an apologetic look on her face. He couldn't hear what they were saying, the restaurant was too loud and he was too far away. "Nadir… Nadir? Did something happen?"

"Yeah. It's a girl."

"What?"

"He was waiting for a girl. They're hugging."

"Is she cute?"

"That's not the point. I'm going to call you back in 3 minutes."

"Okay." And then he hung up. He got up to head towards the bathroom but not before going past their table. He pretended to be a lot slower than he actually was and hobbled near the table. He strained to hear what they were talking about.

"…still like Sunflowers? …

"Yes…It is lovely..."

"…grown in my…."

"…you know… think I was weird..."

"Christine...absurd…"

Then their voices faded away and blended in with the rest of the loud Mexican restaurant. Nadir sighed and went into the bathroom. He was confused. Since Raoul was a part of the whole donation thing at the theatre, he thought maybe he would be behind _Volta_. But apparently this was just a lame attempt at a romantic dinner.

When he got back to his table, he called Nathaniel.

"Well?"

"It's just a date."

"How do you know?"

At that moment, the waitress came by. "Are you ready to order, sir?"

"Yes, thank you. I'll have the…" he told her what he wanted and the second she turned away from him he picked up the phone again. "Sorry. You still there?"

"You didn't get me anything?"

"Seriously."

"How'd you know they're a couple? They got rings?"

"No. But by the way they were talking all gooey, it's kind of obvious."

"What's the girl's name?"

He spoke low. "Christine. Curly, brunette hair. Doesn't raise much suspicion but I'll keep an eye out."

"Oh, well. Enjoy your chicken chalupa… call me if anything else happens. Me and Claude are having sorbet, if you were wondering."

"Thank you for letting me know. I'll alert the newspapers." Then he hung up. He sighed. He came here, thinking it might be good to stalk a Changy and see what happened but all that was happening was laughing and talking. The boy would laugh and lick his lips a lot. The girl would play with the flower and her hair. She rested her head in her hand. He ran his hand through his hair.

Nadir took another sip of his beer. It was going to be a long, lonely night.

* * *

Christine couldn't remember the last time she had smiled this much.

The night was going perfect. She had arrived a little late due to Meg taking forever with her hair. She said she added volume but Christine didn't really see a difference. But she knew she looked presentable. Maybe even… pretty. The waiter came by with their drinks. Christine ordered a virgin Shirley Temple and Raoul ordered water.

Raoul had given her a sunflower; her favorite flower.

"Do you still like Sunflowers? I remember they were your favorite when we were younger."

"Yes! Thank you so much Raoul. It is lovely."

"No problem. It was grown in my mom's garden. Heh."

"That's so cool. You know, my dad used to think I was weird because I didn't like roses like the other girls."

"Christine Daae, that is the most absurd thing I've ever heard. Remember the field we found that one side?"

"Oh, how could I forget?" She remembered. Her and Raoul had been in the 4th grade but they still liked to play tag and such. In the middle of a game, she came across a beautiful, huge field of sunflowers. The sun seemed to glow off of them. Raoul ran towards her and tagged her, but she was too in love with the sight. He had tried to pick some for her but her father had said not to and to let it grow in the Earth where it belonged. To simply admire its beauty from afar.

"I remember how mad your dad got when I tried to pick one."

"Yeah." She chuckled but didn't push it.

"I'm still really sorry about him. He was always so sweet to me and did so much for us."

"Thanks, Raoul. It means a lot. I mean, I did the whole audition thing mainly for him."

"Who else was it for?"

"You." She let the simple word float in the air.

"Oh."

Her face turned beat red. "Uh, I knew I'd get to see you since your father was running the whole thing."

"Ah. I see. You know, I was hoping the whole time that I'd see you audition." Their food then arrived. She ordered the cheese quesadilla, he order a vegetarian taco. They ate for a while and talked a bit about the theatre project when he spoke again. "Congrats about the whole keyboard thing."

She hadn't told him the full of it. "Yeah, about that…" She had a sip of her drink.

"What? What happened?"

She rested her head in her hand. "They accidentally placed me in an all boy-band and now I have to pretend to be a boy if I want to stay in it." There. She said it.

" _What?_ "

"That's what I said! And it was the only spot available so I couldn't just join another band."

"I… I don't… What… Did no one want to switch with you?"

"There were no male keyboard players."

He ran his fingers through his hair. "I… God, I'm so sorry, Christine."

"It could be worse… that's what I keep saying to myself."

"Yeah. But you're strong like that. What do they mean by pretend to be a boy? You have to cut your hair or something?"

"No just pull it up. I'll have to wear boy clothes… my friend Meg said she'd hook me up."

"Okay. You can borrow some of my clothes if you want too."

"Oh…" she remembered Meg saying how it was her _boyfriend_ that had given her the clothes. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it. Why is it so important that it's a boy band? What is so wrong with having a female keyboard player?"

She shrugged. "The leader is a girl and she said her band needed to be guys or else she's kick me out."

"I doubt she has the power to do that."

"I don't know. But she scared me."

He put his hand over hers. It tingled with warmth. "I'm sorry. I should have been there."

"It's okay. I mean, I would have liked having you there but… what's done is done."

"I'm so sorry, Christine." His hand didn't move. They were seated in the kind of booth that didn't separate the people. It curved around the side and now Christine and Raoul were very close next to each other.

"You don't have to apologize, Raoul. You've already done so much. I know you're the one who even got me a callback."

"What?" he looked worried. "Who told you? I told- It doesn't matter. I'm sorry. You told me not to but I couldn't help it. I just wanted to see you happy."

"Thank you, Raoul. I appreciate it. But let me handle things now, okay? And stop apologizing! You're making me feel bad."

"That's the last thing I want to do."

After that they just looked at each other. His eyes were a nice, clear blue. Hers were a deep green. They're faces came closer and closer but they were interrupted when a waiter came by obnoxiously and brought them their bill.

After their dragging conversation and awkward wait for the check, which Christine fought Raoul on paying even though she knew she couldn't afford anything, they finally left. The cool night air hit them in a relaxing haze.

"Thank you so much for tonight. I really had a great time."

"Me too. I've missed you so much. I feel like you're a whole new person."

"Is that a good thing?"

"Yes." And then he leaned in and kissed her. It wasn't her first kiss, she had her first boyfriend in 11th grade with someone her "friends" had set her up with. The relationship lasted two months and he was a sloppy kisser. She steered away from guys from then to college. When her father died, romance was the last thing on her mind.

Unlike her 11th grade boyfriend, Raoul's kiss was soft, sweet, and reassuring. She kissed him back eagerly and he responded. After a few seconds, they broke away for air. He rose his hand and cupped her cheek.

"I'll see you again?"

"Of course." She smiled but she knew she was blushing.

"Good night, Christine."

"Good night, Raoul."

And then he kissed her cheek then left. She stood their paralyzed for a second but then felt utter adoration rise up from inside her. She knew she had romantic feelings for him but was unsure if he returned them, which he apparently did. Her lips still felt tingly. She hadn't been kissed in a long time.

She was about to text Meg that she was ready to be picked up but then realized she had forgotten her sunflower. She ran back into the diner and was relieved to see her table hadn't been cleaned yet. She ran towards it, yet when she got there, there was no sign of the flower ever being there.

It had just disappeared without a trace.

* * *

Nadir plucked the petals off the small flower that now resided on his kitchen table. The girl had left it when they had left. The second they walked out the door, he grabbed it and left the restaurant. He examined the flower, wondering if maybe a recording device was in it or something. If so, they could possibly know his address. He plucked another petal off.

He doubted it.

Tonight had been a bust and he knew it. Every night was a bust. Nothing happened. There no reports of any justice. Only more sickness. Death. His head had begun to throb. He was getting older and all of this stress wasn't good for him. He rubbed his forehead, hoping to ease some of the pain.

He reached for his bottle of Advil and Ibuprofen and put them together, deciding which one to choose.

"What's the damned difference anyway?"

"The difference is that a typical person would take the medicine before their pain intensified. You, on the other hand, wait until the last minute when the pain is at its peak."

Nadir jumped. "You can't just sneak up in the shadows like that! I could have had a heart attack."

"It's a good thing you were near a medicine cabinet then. Besides your current predicament, tell me: was tonight successful?"

"There was nothing to be _successful_ about. He was just going on a date."

"Are you so sure?" she voice slithered throughout the shadows.

He shivered. "I'm pretty sure. They were speaking very fondly of each other… he gave the girl this flower." He held up the sunflower.

The shadow took it into _it's_ hands. "Very odd flower to give a women."

"I guess."

"You seem off." it tsked Are you forgetting your place?"

"No... of course not. I'm just... I don't know about this one. We haven't thought of anything… every time we go in, they kick us out."

"Then how come I am able to stay in the theatre from early morning to evening, Nadir? Is it all to be placed on my shoulders? You are not even trying."

"Of course I am! I just… I've lost a lot of willpower."

"Perhaps remembering your son's pained look as the illness ate away at his insides will restore your _willpower_. Perhaps knowing that hundreds of people are affected everyday isn't enough for you. Maybe remembering your wife's last words doesn't do it. Must you remember Nathaniel's daughter? You only saw her once, but the condition she was in will haunt you for the rest of your life. Claude will never be the same ever again. He can barely say a full sentence without struggle. It's affecting everyone, Nadir. And if you don't get your act together, I might just never pop out of the shadows ever again."

"I-"

"Hey, Nadir? You out there?" Nathaniel's voice rang into the room. With a soft blow of cold air, Nadir knew _he_ had left.

"Yes. It's me." his headache was now at a migraine. He recalled _his_ earlier words. How could he ever forget what was so very importantly executed in front of his daily life? He picked the broken flower that was on the ground and thought about _his_ more recent words. He remembered the terror of agony in his son's eyes. He remembered his wife's last words thrown into a raspy, bloody cough. He remembered Nathaniel's daughter, Delaine, and how sickeningly skinny she was. He remembered finding Claude's half-alive body. Now he possessed the grammar of an eight year old and stuttered on the simplest of words. It was affecting everyone and he almost wondered if it affected him. His head was now just a sharp, piercing pain.

"You okay?" Nathaniel's sleepy voice cut through.

"Yes."

And Nadir crushed the flower with his fist.


End file.
